Online furniture marketplace eporta secures $8 million in new funding

Furniture ecommerce startup eporta has raised $8 million in a Series A round led by Canvas Ventures with participation from several other VC firms, LocalGlobe, Oxford Capital Partners, Samos Ventures, and a number of business angels.

The UK-based startup, which previously raised £2.4 million, has built an online marketplace for furniture aimed at interior designers, architects, and property developers.

The new funds will be invested in growing its staff, opening an office outside the UK, and expanding its product range to bathrooms and fabrics.

Aneeqa Khan, formerly of Zoopla, founded the company after purchasing an unfurnished flat in London.

“I realised that the reason I was finding it so difficult wasn't because there aren't great pieces out there,” she said. “It’s actually because it's really hard for people to find those great pieces or for the people who make the pieces to find trade buyers. So I decided to solve that problem.”

It has amassed 10,000 customers with over a thousand sellers, who pay a commission of less than 10% for listing on the platform. According to the company, it is “highly selective” about what products it lists and that around 90% of applicants are rejected.

“Through our marketplace investments, we’ve seen what it takes to build a category-defining company that brings value to buyers and suppliers alike,” added Paul Hsiao, founding partner at Canvas Ventures.

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